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Sprinkler valve flow increase ideas

Posted: Wed Oct 10, 2012 2:31 am
by rna_duelers
Recently having looked into the field of cylinder head modifications it has crossed my mind to apply some techniques that are used in engines and use them on a sprinkler valve!As the valve itself is the largest bottleneck between the chamber and barrel.

-Adding material to reduce turbulent pockets.(epoxy :) )
-Removing material to reduce turbulence.
-Radius sharp edges for flow.
-Multi seat angles to increase flow due to reduced sharp raddiuses.
-Diaphragm seat reshaping.
-Diaphragm lightening.

All this is good in theory,but in may prove different in the field.Testing and more to come!

Anyone with ideas feel free to share.

Posted: Wed Oct 10, 2012 3:19 am
by jackssmirkingrevenge
You will get a performance increase, but I doubt it will be anything you can perceive without a chrony.

I'll wager that you would most likely see less than 10% increase in muzzle velocity, but if you have the time and inclination it would be great to see some real world data of a modified and unmodified valve.

You will need to keep all the other variables constant - chamber size, barrel length, projectile size and weight etc. - to get meaningful results, and a chrony is essential.

Posted: Wed Oct 10, 2012 12:22 pm
by Technician1002
Just a note on diaphragm weight: Don't try to shave the weight. Doing so may compromise the integrity while gaining little. The diaphragm is fast enough to open and close many times during a shot as evidenced by the number of cannons that "Honk". It is more important to modify the valve to vent the pilot much faster than the chamber can empty down the barrel. A slow pilot causes it to not keep up with the rate the chamber is vented, causing it to close early and then repeat, hence the honk.

Posted: Wed Oct 10, 2012 4:38 pm
by CS
Good analysis, but why is a sprinker valve your starting point? A lot of DIY valves have performance in high regard, a sprinkler valve seems to have other priorities.